It's the Most Dreadful Time of the Year -- for Stocks

More market upheavals have happened on Sept. 22 -- "Gann Day" --than any other. Can the central banks stave off another one?

"October. This is one of the peculiarly dangerous months to speculate in stocks. The others are July, January, September, April, November, May, March, June, December, August, and February." So wrote Mark Twain, ruefully, given his unfortunate experiences in investing.

But there is something about this time of year. Just when nature is at its best -- still-warm temperatures, but you can sleep with the windows open, summer...